Noble Ross Reat - The Tree Symbol in Islam

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The Tree Symbol in Islam

by Noble Ross Reat
Source:Studies in Comparative Religion,Vol.9,No.3. (Summer,1975)WorldWisdom,Inc. www.studiesincomparativereligion.com PRAISEbetoAllh,LordoftheWorlds, TheBeneficient,theMerciful. OwneroftheDayofJudgement, Thee(alone)weworship;Thee(alone)weaskforhelp Showusthestraightpath, ThepathofthosewhomThouhastfavoured; Not(thepath)ofthosewhoearnThineanger,norofthosewho goastray. (QurnI) THEstraightpathorpathoftheupright,sirt al mustaqm, inal-Ftiha,accordingtoal-Ghazl: isanexpressionforthatupwardcourse,which mayalsobeexpressedbyTheFaith,The MansionsofRightGuidance.Werethereno relationbetweenthetwoworlds,nointerconnectionatall,thenallupwardprogresswouldbe inconceivablefromonetotheother.Therefore,the divinemercygavetotheWorldVisiblea correspondencetotheWorldoftheRealmSupernal, andforthisreason,thereisnotasinglethinginthis
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worldofsensethatisnotasymbolofsomethingin yonderone.[1] Having created a symbol with correspondence to the Realm Supernal, Allh explains the symbol through revelation so that man may perceive the deepest layers of meaning in the world aroundhim. SeestthouhowAllhcitethasymbol:Agood wordisasagoodtree,itsrootsetfirmandits branchesinheaven,givingitsfruitateveryseason bytheleaveofitsLord?Allhcitethsymbolsfor menthattheymayreflect(QurnXIV:24-5)[2] This,then,isareflectionuponthetreeasuniversalsymboland itsexplanationinIslam. Throughout Earth and history, man has seen the tree as a link between worlds. The tree as a haunt of malevolent spirits has beenfearedandavoided;asahomeofhelpfulspirits,consulted and worshipped; as a bridge to heaven, climbed by mythical heroes; as a symbol, ascended by reflection. The tree appears universally in art andarchitecture, literature and scripture, used by the wise to turn mens minds to the beyond. Large, living, immovable, the physical nature of the great woody plant called treeexplainspartlyitspre-eminenceamongsymbols.Thetreeis the largest living thing on Earth, rivaled in sheer size only by mountains and bodies of water in the struggle for mans attention.Uponexamination,thetreeembodieslifesmysteries: origin,growth,death.Sprungfromatinyseedininertclay,the treegrowswithoutapparentnourishment,sproutinganewifcut, dying in winter, living in spring. Even those who claim to understandthetreessecretsintermsofchlorophyllandphotons areamazedbythegiganticcolumnoflivingmatterthatisatree. Immovable yet supple, the tree became a model for human
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architecture and a model of divine architecture. In constructing his hut, his miniature cosmos, man relied heavily on the structurallessonofthetree.Averticalpolemaybemadetodefy gravitybyplantingitdeepintheEarth.Horizontalelementsmay be supported by the vertical pole, creating shelter from the sun andrain.Primitivestructures,withroofsupportsradiatingfroma centralpole,oftentakeontheveryappearanceofatree.Thetree was a mediator between divine cosmos and human microcosmos. Through it man saw how Allh structured the infinite, mysteriousuniverse,andhowhecouldimitatedivinecreationon a small scale. The tree was both a practical model for construction and a mystical model of the universe itself; so the upright pole/axis mundi retained its mysterious stabilizing function even beyond its structural function of supporting a building. It becamea universal symbol oforderin the midstof chaos. Trees are naturally associated with water, another universal symbol.Thiswasanespeciallyimportantconnectioninthearid lands,whichhavebeenfertilegroundforreligions.There,atree markswater,andwaterislife: Wesenddownpurifyingwaterfromthesky,that Wemaygivelifetherebytoadeadland,andWe givemanybeastsandmenthatWehavecreatedto drinkthereof.(QurnXXV:48-9). Watersappearsuniversallyinmythologyastheundifferentiated substancefromwhichcreationtookform,theprimevalsourceof being. HavenottheinfidelsseenthattheHeavensandthe earthwereofonepiece?ThenWeriftedthem asunder,andfromthewaterWemadeeveryliving thing(QurnXXI:30).[3]
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InthebeginningGodcreatedtheheavenandthe earth.Andtheearthwaswithoutform,andvoid; anddarknesswasuponthefaceofthedeep.Andthe SpiritofGodmoveduponthefaceofthewaters (GenesisI:1-2).[4] Therewasnothingwhatsoeverhereinthe beginning.Bydeathindeedwasthiscovered.He createdthemind,thinking,letmehaveaself. Fromhimwaterwasproduced.Thatwhichwas thefrothofthewaterbecamesolidified;that becametheearth(Brhadaranyaka Upanisad1-2). [5] Fromthescientificevolutionaryperspective,wateristheoriginal contextofallearthlylife.Inthedeepestlayerofmansmemory iswater,andthefirstaminoacidsminglingtentativelyinathin organicsoup.Imagineatree,itsrootssunkdeepintheearthbya spring,infusedtothetipsofitsleaveswithlife-givingwater,the bloodofgodsandtheessenceofcreation. The special connection between tree and water is paralleled by the conceptual association, through verticality, of tree with mountain. The vertical dimension is uniquely experienced by man,whomovedfromthehorizontalworldoftheanimalstothe world of the erect spinal chord at the same time his mind developedthecapacitytoperceiveamysticalverticaldimension thatpointsbeyond. Is he who goeth groping on his face more rightly guided,orhewhowalkethuprightonabeatenroad? (QurnLXII:22)[6] Allprogress,spiritualormaterial,istoman,upwardprogress,an extension of his upright spine. Tree and mountain, the two mightiestfeaturesinhisworld,confirmthisupwardideabytheir
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verticalaxes,reflectionsofthedivineaxis mundiofmysterious verticality. The Tree in World Mythology Seek lore, even if it be in China, said the Prophet.[7] Thetree,byitsnaturedestinedtobeasymbolforman,appears universally in cosmological myths and superstitions: home of supernaturalpowers,pillarofthesky,andcoreoftheuniverse. Ancient Mexican and Mayan cosmologies picture a tree at the centre of the universe,itsroots inthe primordial watersand its branches in the clouds.[8] In Guiana and Bolivia, the animals are said to have discovered a miraculous tree that bore all the food plants of Earth. They tried to keep their discovery from man, but he eventually found the tree and chopped it down, dispersingthefoodplantsovertheEarthandfloodingtheworld withthewaterinitstrunk.[9]InParaquay,theMbocobistellofa treeby whichthe dead climb toHeaven,[10]and theHereroof Damaraland in Africa hold a certain species of tree sacred because it is the ancestor of man and animals.[11] The Phoenicianspicturedthe universeas atent revolving around its centre pole, which was a great tree.[12] In Scandinavian myth, the mountain in the centre of the disc-shaped world is pierced throughitspeakbyamightyashtree,Yggdrasil,thebranchesof whichsupportclouds,skyandstars.Therootsofthetreearein heaven; the third and deepest root reaches the most sacred fountainofUrd.[13]TheKingWillowofTibetanmythology has its roots in the underworld, its trunk in this world and its branchesinheaven.[14]InJapanesemythologyagiganticmetal pinesupportstheuniverse,andfromRussiacomesthegreatiron treewhoserootisthepowerofGodandwhosebranchessustain the three worlds.[15] Indian religion abounds with tree symbolismofanadvancedphilosophicalnature: The three-footed Brahman has its roots above. Its branchesare space, wind,fire, water, earthand the
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like. This Brahman has the name of the lone fig tree, and of it that is the radiance which is called theSun.(Maitri Upanisad,VI:4)[16] The Tree in the Pre-Islamic Middle-East Possibly the earliest written allusion to the Axis Tree comes from the Persian Gulf circa 3500 B.C. in an Akkadian manuscript. In Eridu, a stalk grew overshadowing; in a holy place it did become green. Its roots were of white crystal,whichstretchedtowardthedeep.Itsseat was(thecentralplaceoftheEarth).Itsfoliagewas thecouchofZikumthe(primeval)mother.Intothe heartofitsholyhouse,whichspreadashadelikea forest, hath no man entered. There is the home of themightymotherwhopassesacrossthesky.[17] Sayces translation, offered as evidence of his theory that the Biblical Tree of Life has roots in Babylon, is sharply questioned by R. Campbell Thompson[18] who rejects the theory.Youwillseebelow,however,thatthetreedescribedhere is similar in several respects to the Islamic Tree of Bliss. In another Babylonian legend, the hero Gilgamesh, in search of a miraculous plant to heal the sick and revive the dead, encounteredanenchantedgarden: Inthemidstofithesawadivineandbeautifultree toward which he hastened. On its gleaming branches hung clusters of precious stones, and its leaveswereoflapaslazuli.[19] A recurrent scene in Assyrian reliefs depicts the king standing besideatreeandaccompaniedbygeniiwhoseemtobeplucking its leaves and giving them to the king or applying them to his
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person or weapons. Similarly, in Egypt, the Pharaoh is often depicted standing by a tree with supernatural beings.[20] A common Egyptian cosmology places a tree at the centre of the universewithBennu,theSunGod,initsbranches.[21] Archaeological evidence from the palace of Ras Shamra in Caananlinksthetreewithfertility.[22]Thesacralityofthetree in Caanan is borne out by the Biblical condemnations of the Caananite altars under green trees, and the prohibition of planting ashera (sacred trees or posts) by Yahwehs altars.[23] ThoughtheHebrewscondemnpagantreecults,atreestandsin thecentreoftheirParadise,[24] andtreeseven take ona pagan oracularfunctioninIISamuelwhereDavidistoldbyarustling sound in the tree tops when to attack the Philistines.[25] The treeretainsitsimportanceinChristianity,[26]someholdingthat thetreeisthearchetypeforthecrossitself. TheZoroastriantradition,PersianbrotheroftheVedictradition ofIndia,tellsofthemiraculoustreeHaoma: Honor to Haoma his branches bow down that one may enjoy them. To the soul he is the way to heaven. In the beginning Ormazd gave to Haoma thegirdleglitteringwithstars,wherewithhegirdled himselfuponthetopsofmountains.[27] R. Gordon Wassons book, Soma: The Divine Mushroom of Immortality,[28]whichoffersaconvincingargumenttoidentify the Vedic Soma and the Avestan Haoma with a hallucinogenic mushroom, throws out much of the speculation that Soma and Haomaareprimarilyaxistrees.However,inlaterpassagesofthe Zend-Avesta, Haoma did become a divine tree, long after the hallucinogenicprototypehadbeenforgotten.InMithraismadual tree symbolism was popular, the two trees apparently representingthepolesoftheuniverse.TheEsquilineMithraeum containstwo trees painted onoppositesides ofitsvault,one in
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fullleafandtheotherdead,andwiththesunandmoonintheir branches.[29]AlsoinMithraismisthemyththatlifeoriginated from a tree, and paintings depict oracular talking trees with heads on their branches[30] which were very popular in later Persianpoetryaswaqwaqtrees. The Tree in Arab Paganism Not only was the tree of symbolic importance in many of the religionsthatprecededIslamintheMiddle-East,butitwasalso a popular object of superstition and religion in the pre-Islamic paganismoftheArabianPeninsula,thesoilofIslam.Treeswere commonlythoughttobetheabodesofjinn,supernaturalbeings, (ancestorofgenieandgenius),andwereevenconsideredto embody jinn. The Arab pagans, along with the rest of the Middle-East, ascribed a divinatory function to certain trees. TherewasasacredtreenearMecca,thesacredacaciaofNakhla, where lived the goddess Al-Ozza. In an annual ceremony, the Meccans hung weapons, garments and ornaments on the tree thus its vague mention in the Hadth literature as the dht anwt, tree to hang things on[31] In his Travels, Sir W. Ousley mentions an oracular date palm near Nejran in Yemen whichwasstill,inmoderntimes,adornedannuallywithclothes and ornaments.[32] Though the Prophet banned divination, the association of trees with oracles persisted even among the faithful.MuslimibnUqba,inadream,heardagharcadtreetell him to lead the army of the Yazid against Medina.[33] Numerous beliefs in the supernatural nature of trees persist, in fact, to the present in the Arabian peninsula. A sick man may sleepunderatreetoreceivecounselinadreamforhisrecovery. [34]ArabsoftenrepresenttheZodiacasatwelve-branchedtree, with its fruits shown as stars.[35] Many of the pagan tree associations that have survived in the Arab world have been Islamicized, so that, for example, trees may be thought of as places where instead of jinn, angels descend. Modern Muslims consideritgoodlucktositunderasidraorlotetree,aspeciesof plum which, in the Qurn, the Prophet saw in Paradise. In the
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middleoftheShbn,theeighthMuslimmonth,itissaidthatthe sidra tree in Paradise is shaken. Each of its leaves bears the nameofasoul,andifhisleaffallsoff,thatpersondieswithina yearsoonerorlaterdependingonhowwitheredtheleafiswhen itfalls.[36] Muchofthetreelorefromthepre-IslamicMiddle-Eastandthe restoftheworldbearsastrikingresemblancetothesacredtree that developed in Islam, but between noting similarity and provinginfluencethereisamountainofscholarship,amountain which I will not try to scale. Nevertheless, only the staunchest fundamentalist would deny that the World Tree of Islam does haverootsinMiddle-Easternmythologyanddeeper-rootsinthe universalconsciousnessofman.Islamsborrowingfromexisting traditions is not, however, a weakness, but a strength. By manipulating and elaborating on existing symbolism and superstition,Islamhasbeenabletocaptureandmovetheminds of men of widely varying status, intelligence, background and language.Thisprocessofmanipulationandelaborationbeginsin theQurn,butitisbroadlyandliberallyextendedintheHadth literatureandamongthemystics.TheIslamicTreeofBliss,in its final form, incorporates roughly equal parts of Qurn and Middle-Easternmythology,alongwithasignificantcontribution fromMuslimscholarsandmystics. The Tree in Islam ThetreesymbolplaysonlyaminorroleintheQurnitself,yet amongthemysticsandinMuslimartandarchitectureitbecame one of Islams most developed symbols. The Shajarat al-Tba, TreeofBliss,theIslamicWorldTree,doesnotappearinname or description in the Qurn. Instead, there are several distinct supernaturaltrees.OnlyintheHadthandamongmysticsarethe varioustreesintegratedintooneconsistentsymbol.Thereare,in the Qurn, three distinct supernatural trees: (1) the Infernal Tree, Zaqqm, in Hell, (2) the Lote Tree of the Uttermost Boundary,Sidrat al-Muntah,intheSeventhHeavenand(3)the
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TreeofKnowledge,theforbiddentreeintheGardenofEden.A fourthtree,mentionedintheLampVerse,[37]theoliveneither oftheEastnorWest,willbedealtwithfinally. The Infernal Tree AwaitingthewickedinHellistheaccursedtreeZaqqm: Lo! We have appointed it a torment for wrongdoers. Lo!itisatreethatspringethintheheartofHell. Itscropis,asitweretheheadsofdevils. And lo! They verily must eatthereof, and filltheir belliestherewith. (QurnXXXVII:63-6). The Tree of Knowledge The Qurnic forbidden tree in the Garden of Eden is not the Jewish Tree of Knowledge. It mixes elements of the Tree of Knowledge motif and the Tree of Immortality motif, but its primary function is as a metaphor of mans disobedience of Allh.(SomeholdthattheJewishTreeofKnowledgeisadevice insertedbytheJahwistscribetoaccountformansfall,sothere wasonlyonetreeintheoriginalJewishGardenalso.)[3]8Inthe Qurn, Ibls (Satan) persuades Adam and Eve to eat from the forbiddentreeforthesakeofimmortality,notknowledge.Ibls, not so gentlemanly as the Jewish serpent, lies to tempt man, whereas the serpent ruins him with the truth. The effects of eatingtheforbiddenfruitarenotwhatIblspromised,andAdam andEveheapleavesuponthemselvesoutofshame.Whetheritis shame of their nakedness or shame at disobeying Allh is not clear,butatanyratetheyarecastoutoftheGarden: The Devil whispered to him, saying: O Adam! ShallIshowtheetheTreeofImmortalityandpower
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that wasteth not away? Then they twain ate thereof, so that their shame became apparent to them, and they began to hide by heaping on themselves some of the leaves of the Garden. And Adam disobeyed his Lord, so went astray. (Qurn XX:120-1)[39] The Lote Tree of the Uttermost Boundary In the Jewish tradition, it is the Tree of Life in Eden that is expanded in post-Biblical writings like the Talmud into a fullblown symbolic complex. The Islamic World Tree, though, looks to the Star Sra and the Lote Tree of the Uttermost Boundaryforitsarchetype. Andverilyhesawhimatanotherrevelation,beside thelote-treeoftheutter-mostboundary,wherebyis the Garden of Refuge. When there enshrouded the lote-treeThatWhichenshroudeth,thesightwavered not, nor did it transgress. Verily he sawoneof the GreaterSignsofhisLord.(QurnLIII:13-18)[40] TheonlyotherreferencetolotetreesisinthesraoftheEvent, theEventbeingthe DayofJudgement,when thoseonthe right handofAllh,i.e.thefaithful,willdwell: Among thornless lote trees and clustered plantains, andspreadingshade,andwatergushing,andfruitin plenty.(QurnLVI:28-32). Sincethispassagespeaksofthelotetreesinplural,itcouldnot refer to the Lote Tree of the Uttermost Boundary, which is a unique tree. In the Hadth literature, though, the two passages merge, and the lote tree in the Seventh Heaven combines elementsofthetreesinboththeStarandtheEvent Sras.Itisa uniquetree,asintheStar,butitislocatedamongthefountains
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andisthesourceofthefruitandshadementionedintheEvent. Each of these elements, the unique tree, the fountains, the fruit and the shade are important to the paradisal tree of the Hadth, called Shajarat al-Tba,TreeofBliss,aname notfound inthe Qurn,andaconceptwithonlyavagueQurnicbasis. Inacommonhadthrecordedbybothal-BukhrandMuslim: According to Ab Huraira, the Prophet said: In Paradise thereis atree in whoseshadea horseman wouldbeabletorideforahundredyears.[41] Al-Bukhr and Ibn Hanbal both add to the basic hadth (i.e. ParadiseTreehorsemanahundredyears): Recite(iqrar)then,ifyouwant:andofaspreading shade.(QurnLVI:30).Verily,halfabowlength inParadiseexceedsallthisuponwhichthesunrises andsets.[42] Here, recite apparently means refer to (Qurn LVI: 30). These twohadthshow thefusionofthe twoQurniclotetree passages. The spreading shade of the lote trees in the Event Sra iscitedinrelationtotheuniquetreeoftheStar Sra.The transporting of the word shade to the unique tree of the Seventh Heaven has special significance in that shade is an important symbolic quality of the Islamic Tree of Bliss. In a marginal note to Muslims Al-Jmi al-Sahh, al-Nawaw says theshadeisametaphorforthebounty,comfortandprotectionof theparadisaltree.[43]Naturally,inthescorchingsunofArabia, atreebestowsaspeciallyappreciatedblessinginthecomfortof itsshade.Byextension,themiraculoustreeinParadisebestows all comforts and blessings upon the fortunate ones who rest beneath it. In modern Arabic, the expression, in the shadow (shade)ofthekingisroughlyequivalenttoourundertheaegis oftheking.
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These hadth also employ the common symbolic technique of representing transcendence by inflated size, a technique used again indescribingthe leavesand fruitsofthetree. In ahadth traced to Mlik ibn Anas and recorded both in Ibn Hanbals Musnad andtheMishkt al-Masbih: Then I entered the Seventh Region, and behold, I sawAbraham.AfterthatIwastakenuptoSidrat al-Muntah(LoteTreeoftheUttermostBoundary), and behold, its fruits were like waterpots and its leaveslikeelephantsears.AndGabrielsaid,This isSidrat al-Muntah.AndIsawfourriversthere; two concealed (btinya) and two revealed (zhirya). I said to Gabriel, What are these? He said, These two concealed rivers are in Paradise, and the two revealed are the Nile and the Euphrates[44] Herealso,thedoctrineofthetwonamesofGodisincorporated into the symbolic complex of the World Tree, the two names beingthezhiryaandthebtinya:therevealedandconcealed, manifest and unmanifest, exoteric and esoteric. Al-Ghazl writes: The outward symbol is a real thing, and its application to the inward meaning is a real truth. Everyrealthinghasitscorrespondingrealtruth.[45] TheIslamicWorldTreetakesitsmostcommonname,Shajarat al-Tba (Tree ofBliss) in several hadths.Ibn Hanbal traces to Ab-Sadal-KhudrthetraditionthataBedouinapproachedthe Prophet and asked, What is bliss (tba)? The Prophet answered: BlissisatreeinParadise,atreeofahundredyears
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walk,andthoseunderthetreeareclothedinclothes fromthesleeves(i.e.flowercalixes)ofthetree.[46] Inapassage tracedtoUtbaibnAbdal-Salm,aBedouinwas questioning the Prophet about the fountains and fruits of Paradise,andheasked,Whatisbliss?TheProphetreplied: ItisatreeinParadise,whereinisatreecalledBliss (Tba). Then the Bedouin asked, Which tree of our Earth does it resemble? The Prophet replied, ItdoesnotresembleanytreeofyourEarth.[47] IntwotraditionstracedbyIbnHanbaltoAbHuraira,thetreeof shadeunsurpassableinahundredyearsridingiscalledtheTree ofImmortality.[48]Inthecontextoftheotherpassagesaboutthe hundredyearsshadetree,though,Immortalityapparentlyrefers here to immortality in the afterlife, not the opportunity for unendingworldlylifewithoutdeath,theusualtreasureofatree of immortality. In Islam, submission to the will of Allh is the cardinal virtue, so trying to overcome the human situation by gaining earthly immortality would be unthinkable. The Prophet issaidtohavesaid,Thyexistenceisasinwherewithnoother sincanbecompared.[49]InSufism,submissiontoAllhmeans ultimately annihilating the ego, the metaphor being death.[50] Thus,fromtheBook of Certainty: The true soul remains perpetually extinguished in the Garden of the Heart and is perpetually reborn from it; and this perpetual merging of death into birth, which is denial of death, is the immortality from which the tree and the fountain take their name.[51] ThemysteriousnatureoftheTreeofImmortalityisemphasized by Rm in his Mathnaw. He relates the story of a king, who upon hearing of a tree whose fruit gives immortality, sent an
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envoy to find it. After many years of fruitless searching, the envoy,indesperation,approachedawiseSheikhsaying: There is a tree, unique in all the quarters of the world:itsfruitisofthesubstanceoftheWater ofLife. I have sought it for years and seen no sign except thegibesandridiculeofthesemerrymen. TheSheikhlaughedandsaidtohim,OSimpleton, thisisthetreeofknowledgeinthesage Veryhighandverygrandandveryfar-spreading:it is a Water of Life from the all-encompassing SeaofGod. Thou hast gone after the form, thou hast gone astray:thoucanstnotfinditbecausethouhast abandonedthereality. Sometimes it is named tree sometimes sun; sometimes it is named sea, sometimes cloud. Itisthatonethingfromwhichahundred thousand effects arise: its least effects are everlasting life. Although in essence it is single, it hath a thousand effects innumerable names befit that one thing.[52] Here, Rm equates the tree of knowledge with the tree of immortality, that is, equates knowledge with immortality. This treeofknowledge,however,iscertainlynottheforbiddentreeof the Qurnic Garden of Eden, nor does it resemble the Tree of Knowledge in Jewish tradition, which, even in post-biblical writings,retainsitsaccursednature. And she took of its fruit, as it is said, and pressed the grape out and gave it to him, and thereby brought death to the whole world. For in this tree
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wasdeath andthis isthe tree whichprevails inthe night.[53] In post-biblical Jewish tradition, the Tree of Immortality, jealously guarded by Yahweh in Genesis 3: 24, loses its forbidden nature and becomes the resting place of the pious in Heaven.IntheMidrash Konen: Inthemidstofit(Paradise)istheTreeofLifeaswe aretoldinGenesis2:9,andtheheightoftheTreeis a journey of five hundred years. In its shade AbrahamandIssacareseated.TheTreeofLifeis plantedabovethesourceofthelivingwaters.[5]4 Similarly, the Islamic Tree of Immortality sheds its original stigma of being the temptation of Ibls and is incorporated into the symbolic complex of the Muslim World Tree. A common sceneinMuslimartdepictingatreesurroundedbywildanimals mayshowthattheparadisaltreeretaineditsforbidden,guarded natureinIslam,butit ismorelikelythatthesescenesarelifted straight from general Middle-Eastern art, where they are common,withoutretaininganysymbolicmeaning.[55] A summary to this point: In the Qurn, there is one forbidden treeintheGardenofEden.IblscallsittheTreeofImmortality. Later it is popularly called the Tree of Knowledge, apparently becauseofitsresemblancetotheJewishTreeofKnowledge.In the Hadth literature, the Tree of Immortality, no longer forbidden, is equated with the Qurnic Lote Tree of the Uttermost Boundary, the model of the Islamic World Tree, whichisfinallycalledtheTreeofBliss.TheTreeofKnowledge isnotmentionedbynameintheQurnorHadth.Themystics, bent on gnosis, continue to talk about the Tree of Knowledge, andtheTreeofImmortality,but,likeRm,theytendtoequate the two trees and assign them the characteristics of the World Tree.IntheBook of Certainty:
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InthecentreoftheGardenofEdenthereissaidto benotonlyafountain,butalsoatree,atwhosefoot thefountainflows.ThisistheTreeofImmortality, and it is an outward image of the inward Tree of Immortality which grows in the Garden of the Heart Once the traveller has drunk of the waters ofthefountainandeatenofthefruitofthetree,and hasthusgainedthewisdomoftheEyeoftheHeart, whichconsistsindirectcontactwiththeSpirit,heis atlastsafe[56] AllofthesetreesTreeofKnowledge,TreeofImmortalityand Lote Tree of the Uttermost Boundaryeventually become one with the Tree of Bliss. The most complex development of the treeofBlissintheHadthisintheQurrat al-uyn.Thepassage, traced to Ab al-Laith as-Samarqand, is one of the most vivid mirj hadths, and it probably was the model for Ibn Arabs famousplanofParadiseinal-Futht al-Makkya: The Prophet said, In Paradise, there is a Tree of Blisswhoserootisinmydwellingplaceandwhose branches shelter all the mansions of heaven; nor is theremansionordwellingplacewhichlacksoneof its branches. Every branch thereof bears every species of fruit that has been in the world. And everyflowerthathasbeenintheworldblossomson that branch, but more abundantly and splendidly than the fruits of the world, and fairer than its flowers. And the Tree of Bliss bears grapes, every cluster of which is longer than a months journey, and each single grape is as big as a swollen water skin.Eachoftheblessedhashisownbranchwith hisnameinscribedonit.[57]
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IbnArabsPlanofParadise[58] IbnArabscosmologydepictstheentireuniverseasaseriesof concentricspheres,beginningwiththesphereofEarth,thenthe spheres of water,air, ether,moon,Mercury, Venus, Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and Fixed Stars. Beyond the Fixed Stars is the ParadiseoftheElect,boundedbytheprimum mobile,thestarless sphere, above which is the Throne of Allh Himself. Between thespheresoftheFixedStarsandtheprimum mobile,then,are theeightconcentricspheresofParadise. Actually,thereareonlysevenconcentricspheres.TheAbodeof Grace, associated with the Prophet, spans all the others. Each sphereholdsinnumerablegrades,whichinturncontaincountless
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individual mansions. The Tree of Bliss in Ibn Arabs plan grows inverted from the primum mobile, with its roots in the Abode of Allh, its trunk spanning all the seven levels of Paradise, and its inscribed branches penetrating each of the individualmansionsofbliss.[59]NotethatIbnArabnamesthe seventh region of Paradise the Garden of Eden, so the Tree of Bliss,liketheJewish TreeofLife,grows inthecentreofEden accordingtohiscosmology. The passage from the Qurrat al-uyn suggests inversion by locating the root of the Tree of Bliss in Allhs abode, but the actual doctrine of inversion begins with Ibn Arab. The inversionoftheTreeofBlissisofdoublesignificance.First,by inversion,theTreeofBlissisrootedinthegroundofBeingand fedbythewaterofEssence.Itsrootsareinthedwellingplaceof Allh,sotheTreedrawsitslifefromtheEssenceofUnityItself, as an earthly tree draws its life from water, symbol of the essential unity of creation. As if the water of the Essence of Unity were too abundant to be absorbed even by the Tree of Bliss,itgushesforthinvariousriversandfountainsofParadise. [60]Secondly,InversionisitselfanimportantsymbolinIslam, representing the incomprehensibility of the transcendent by rationalmeans.Itisthecosmicprincipleofinversionthatcauses atreeonearthtobeinvertedwhenreflectedinapoolofwater. Although the image in the pool is recognised as somehow connected with the tree, the image is on a lower plane of existence, devoid of all the real trees beneficent qualities: stability,shadeandfruit.Similarly,theearthlytreeisonlyafaint imageofthedivineTreeofBliss.Anintelligentman,seeingthe image of a tree in a pond will look up to see the tree itself. A wise man, seeing the tree will look beyond it to the archetypal treestandinginvertedatthecentreoftheuniverse. The Sf looks inward to see the Real, of which the material worldisbutavague,invertedreflection.Rmwrites: O man of vanity, the marks are within the heart:
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that which is without is only the marks of the marks. The real orchards and verdure are in the very essenceofthesoul:thereflectionthereofupon that which is without is as the reflection in runningwater. In the water there is only the phantom of the orchard,whichquiversonaccountofthesubtle qualityofthewater. Therealorchardsandfruitsarewithintheheart:the reflection of their beauty is falling upon this waterandearth.[61] The doctrine of inversion is not exclusively the possession of esoterism, but finds expression in everyday Islam as well. A common feature in Islamic religious architecture, for example the Taj Mahal, is a reflecting pool, a reminder that the Real stands to this world as the mosque to its reflection in water. Often a mosque dome is decorated with an intricate, branching floraldesignradiatingfromtheapexofthedome.Insomecases, asforexampletheDomeoftheRockinJerusalem,thispattern almost certainly represents the Tree of Bliss, its branches growingdownward from Paradiseandspreadingto fillthe sky, whichisrepresentedbythedome.Similardesignsalsoadornthe dome of the Sehzade Mosque in Istanbul[62] and the dome of the mosque in the Taj Mahal enclosure.[63] The dome of GawharSahdsmausoleuminHerat,Afghanistan,callstomind the Hadth passage, There is no mansion or dwelling place which lacks one of its branches.[64] A floral pattern radiates from the apex of the central dome and is continued in the numerousquarter-domesthataregroupedsymmetricallyaround the main dome. In each of the quarter-domes, the floral pattern explodespalmatelyfrom theapex,asif it weretheculmination of a branch of the Tree of Bliss in one of the individual mansions.[65]
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The dome of the Lutfullah mosque in Isfahan bears a sunburst motifwithaneight-pointedstaratitsapex.Thespaceinsidethe sunburstisfilledwithaspiralingtendrildesign,andoutsidethe sunburst is a radiating floral pattern representing the Tree of Bliss. Thus, the entire dome depicts the Tree of Bliss with the sun in itsbranches,animportantmotifinIslamanda recurrent one in world mythology.[66] It would be difficult to overstate the symbolic importance of light, and thus the sun in Islam. Light,writesIbnArab,isthatwhichinthephenomenalworld is least separated from the divine. In Sufism, night represents thisworldanddaythenextworld,andthesunwhichlightsthe daycorrespondstotheSpiritwhichlightsParadise.[68] Allh is the light of the heavens and the earth. (QurnXXIV:35). HeitisWhohathmadethesunasplendourandthe moonalight.(QurnX:5)[69] AndinQurnLIII:16-18: When there enshrouded the lote-tree that which enshroudeth, the sight wavered not, nor did it transgress. Verily he saw one of the Greater Signs ofhisLord.[70] Thecommentator,thoughtbymosttobeIbnArab,inexegesis ofthisversewrites: He(theProphet)wasnotveiledbyit(thelotetree) and its form, nor by Gabriel in the fullness of his angelhood,fromtheTruthwhenitoverflowedupon thelotetree.[71] Thus, the revelation to the Prophet beside the Lote Tree of the
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UttermostBoundaryis,andalmostinevitablyso,conceivedofin termsoflight.Notwithoutbasisistheviewthatthedomeofthe Lutfullah Mosque, with its sunburst and Tree of Bliss, is a representationofAllhsrevelationtotheProphetintheSeventh Heaven,evenregardlessofthearchitectsintention. Imentionedearlierthattheverticaldimensionrepresentstoman the direction of spiritual progress. In the highly directional Muslim religion, verticality takes on special importance. Every mosqueisorientatedsothatitshorizontalaxis,passingthrough themihrab(prayerniche)pointstotheKabainMecca,through which the vertical axis of the universe passes. The mosque as microcosm incorporates into its design the vertical axis mundi piercingtheapexofthedome.Thus,inthemanymosqueswhich depictthesunattheapexofthedome-sky,thesunisgraphically linkedwiththeaxis mundiandspiritualprogress.Notealsothe ceremonies of the Maulawya Dervishes, where the whirling dancers circle around the vertical axis (qutb) of the ceremony. The dancers represent planets and the qutb, said to be the mysteriously present founderof the order,is thesun. Now it is clearerhowtheTreeofBoundaryandtheTreeofCentremaybe one.Itmightseemthataboundarycouldnotbealsoacentre,but heretheboundaryisthelimitofallhorizontalprogress,beyond whichisonlyverticalassumptiontotheLightofAllh.Onemay scrutinisealluponthisearthandintheheavenssavethesun.To gazeatthesunburnsouttheeye.ThedirectrevelationofAllh burns up the individuality. The commentator says of the Lote TreeinQurnLIII:14: (It is)atree in theSeventh Heavenwhichmarketh the boundary of the Angels knowledge. None of themknowethwhatisbeyondit.Itisthesupreme Spiritabove which there is nothing but the Pure Selfhood. He (the Prophet) was not veiled by it (the Lote tree) and its form, nor by Gabriel in the fullness of his angelhood, from the Truth (when it
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overflowed upon the Lote tree), and therefore He hath said: The sight wavered not, by turning aside and looking at other than It, nor did it transgress, through looking at itself and being veiled by the individuality.[72] Only one more tree from the Qurn need be examined, the oliveneitheroftheEastnoroftheWestinSraXXIV:35: Allhisthelightoftheheavensandtheearth.The similitude of His light is as a niche wherein is a lamp.Thelampisinaglass.Theglassisasitwere a shining star.This lamp is kindled from a blessed tree, an olive neither of the East nor of the West, whoseoilwouldalmostglowforth(ofitself)though no fire touched it. Light upon light, Allh guideth untoHislightwhomHewill.AndAllhspeakethto mankind in allegories, for Allh is Knower of all things. This verse has served as the basic blueprint around which all mosquesgrandandsmallhavebeendesigned,withanicheatthe qiblabeforewhichhangsalamp.Theblessedolivetreetakeson great importance in Muslim prayer rugs, miniature mosques, whichembodyinportableformalltheessentialcharacteristicsof the mosque: the niche, ritual purity and an axis of symmetry whichmaybeorientedtowardtheqibla.Mostprayerrugsdepict alamp, ofteninhighlystylisedform,hangingbeforetheniche, just like the mosque, and there is often a tree in the niche too. Considering the close relationship between Qurn XXIV: 35, themosque,andtheprayerrug,itisquitepossiblethatthetreeis simplytheoliveneitheroftheEastnoroftheWest.Agraphic example of this interpretation is a rug woven by the seminomadicKulatribeofwesternTurkeywhichshowsanicheand lampwithastylisedtreedescendingfromthelampasifitwere feedingthelampdirectlywithoil.[73]Mostofthetreesdepicted
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on prayer rugs, however, bear no resemblance to the olive. Indeed, most of them cannot be botanically identified with any typeoftree,andmanyofthemaresostylisedthattheyscarcely resemble trees at all. Quite commonly, though, the tree is obviouslyafruittree.Thusthemoreelegantinterpretation:The prayerrugdepictsthenicheopeninguponaviewofParadise,in whichcasethetreeistheTreeofBliss.[74]Thethemeofagate or doorway opening to Paradise is one of the most ancient and widespreadsymbols,usedfrequentlyintheQurnitself.[75]In view ofthe crucial importance oftheprayer niche, this view is persuasive. The phrase neither of the East nor of the West suggests centrality and is therefore open tobeing interpretedas applying to the Tree of Bliss, and the water symbolism mentionedearlier playsanimportant partinthe paradisal motif ofMuslimprayerrugs.Oftenarugdepictsatreegrowingoutof avase,symbolisingadivinesourceofwater,andonsomerugs maybeseenaquaticfowlswhichindicatetheproximityofwater inparadisalsymbolism.[76] The axis of symmetry of the prayer rug is analogous to the horizontalaxisofthemosque,whichpointstotheqibla,anditis associated with the axis mundi of the cosmos. When the worshipper kneels upon the rug to pray, he sees the symbolic sceneofParadise andthinks oftheReal sceneashecallsupon Allh to guide him to Paradise by the sirt al-mustaqm, the pathoftheupright. NOTES [1] Al-Ghazl, Mishkat al-Anwar,p.29,Cairo edition.English translation: The Niche for Lights by W. H. T. Gairdner, Royal AsiaticSociety,London,1924,p.71. [2] Un-noted passages are from Mohammed M. Pickthalls
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translation of the Qurn: The Meaning of the Glorious Koran, George Allen and Unwin, London. But here, I use Ab Bakr SirajEd-Dn,The Book of Certainty,SamuelWeiser,NewYork, 1970, p. 48, except for reflect, which is Pickthalls word insteadofEd-Dnsremember. [3]AbBakrSirajEd-Dn,The Book of Certainty,p.56. [4]KingJamesBible. [5] S.Radhakrishnan, The Principal Upanisads, George Allen andUnwin,London,1968. [6]NoteQurnLXXXII:7,Whocreatedthee,thenfashioned, then proportioned (adalaka) thee? Here, adalaka connotes settingupright.InQurnXCV:4,Verilywecreatedmanin the fairest rectitude. (Book of Certainty, p. 44) Tagwim (rectitude)isrelatedgrammaticallytotheverbqama,toerect or set up. Note also in al-Fatihah, the path of the upright, sirat al-mustaqim. [7]AbBakrSirajEd-Dn,The Book of Certainty,p.100. [8] Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics, James Hastings (editor),T.andT.ClarkEdinburgh1908,vol.IV,p.330b. [9] Dictionary of Folklore, Maria Leach (editor), Funk and WagnellsCo.,NewYork,vol.II,p.1123. [10]Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics,vol.IV,p.330b. [11]Ibid.,vol.I,p.164b. [12] Philpot, Isaline H., The Sacred Tree, Macmillan and Co., London1879,p.117. [13]Ibid.,p.113.
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[14]EncyclopaediaofReligionandEthics,vol.VIII,p.76b. [15]Philpot,The Sacred Tree,pp.118,120. [16] Radhakrishnan, The Principle Upanisads. See Katha UpanisadVI,1. [17] Sayce, A. H., The Religion of the Ancient Babylonians, London,1887,p.385. [18] Thompson, R. Campbell, The Devils and Evil Spirits of Babylonia,London1903,vol.I,Introduction. [19] Mackenzie, Donald A. Myths of Babylonia and Assyria, GreshamPublishingCo.,London,n.d.,p.178. [20] Gaster, Theodor H., Myth Legend and Custom in the Old Testament,HarperandRow,NewYork,1969,p.34. [21]Philpot,The Sacred Tree,p.117. [22]Gray,John,The Caananites,ThamesandHudson,London, 1964,pp.226,227,231;plates6,9,10,32. [23]DeuteronomyXVI:21,Bible. [24]GenesisII:9,Bible. [25] II Samuel V: 24, Bible. See Kitb al-Aghani, Bulaq, 1868 A.D.(1284-5A.H.)vol.I,p.14.(citedbelow,p.7). [26] Revelation XXII: 2, Bible. It is said among Christians that man fell because of a tree(the Treeof Knowledge); was saved byatree(thecross);andinheavenwillrestbeneathatree(the TreeofLife).
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[27]Philpot,The Sacred Tree,p.123. [28] Wasson, R. Gordon, Soma: The Divine Mushroom of Immortality,Harcourt,BraceandJovanovich,NewYork,1971. [29]Campbell,LeroyA.,Mithraic Iconography and Ideology,E. J. Brill, Leiden, Netherlands, 1968, p. 35. See Zohar, Mantua, ed. vol. I, p. 36 (cited below p. 14), where the Tree of Knowledge(Death)prevailsatnight,thuscorrespondinghereto thedeadtreewiththemooninitsbranches.SeealsoZoharvol. III. pp. 119-20 where day and night correspond to the Trees of LifeandDeath. [30]Campbell,Mithraic Iconography and Ideology,p.113. [31]Philpot,The Sacred Tree,p.45 [32] Ousley, W., Travels in Various Countries, London, 181923,vol.VI,p.369.FromPhilpot,The Sacred Tree,p.99. [33]Aliibnal-HusainAbal-Farajal-Isbahni,Kitab al-Aghani, Bulaq,1868A.D.(1284-5A.H.),vol.I,p.14.SeeIISamuelV: 24(citedabove,p.6). [34] Robertson-Smith, William The Religion of the Semites, A. andC.Black,Edinburgh,1889,p.169. [35]Philpot,The Sacred Tree,p.119. [36] Cragg, Kenneth, The Dome and the Rock, S.P.C.K. Holy TrinityChurch,London,1964,p.203. [37]QurnXXIV:35. [38] Ameisenowa, Zofja, The Tree of Life in Jewish Iconography, Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institute,
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vol.II,1938-39,p.329. [39]SeeQurnVII:19-20andII:35. [40]AbBakrSirajEd-Dn,The Book of Certainty,p.26. [41] Al-Bukhr, Les Traditions Islamiques, Translation by O. Hondas, Imprimre National, Paris, 1903-1914, titre LIX, p. 442. Muslim, Al-Jami al-Sahh, A. H. 1332, no place of publication indicated, p. 144, (Janna, nos. 6-8). The edition used is shelf-marked S.G.L. III-429 at London University S.O.A.S. Library. See also: Ibn Hanbal, Musnad, Cairo 1895 (1313 A.H.), vol. II, p. 482. In several passages, Ab Huraira gives his hadth with the modification that the rider could not traversetheshadein100years.Muslimp.144;IbnHanbal,vol. II,pp.438,452,469,vol.III,pp.110,135,185,207,234.And according to Ab Said al-Khundr, the horseman may even be mountedonafaststeed.Al-Bukhr,titreLXXXI,p.308.See Ibn Hanbal, vol. II, p. 404; Muslim, p. 144. Hadth reference fromA.J.Wensinck,A Handbook of Early Muslim Tradition,E. J.Brill,Leiden,1927,p.183. [42]Al-Bukhr,titreLIX,p.442;IbnHanbal,vol.II,p.482. [43] Muslim, p. 144 (Janna, marginal note to nos. 6-8 by YahyaibnSharafaI-Nawaw). [44]IbnHanbal,vol.III.p.164.MuhammadibnAbdAllahalKhatb al-Tibrz Mishkt al-Masbih, translation by A. N. Matthews (sic), Calcutta, 1823. I use Matthews translation except for btinya and zhirya which he translates hidden andmanifest. [45] Mishkt al-Anwr, Bulaq ed., p. 37. Gairdner translation, RoyalAsiaticSociety,p.79. [46]IbnHanbal,vol.III,p.71.
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[47]Ibid.,vol.IV,p.183. [48]Ibid.,vol.II,pp.445,462. [49]AbBakrSirjEd-Dn,The Book of Certainty,p.26. [50] In Persian gardens, fruit trees and cypresses are often planted together. The cypress symbolizes death, because once cut, it never sprouts anew. The fruit tree symbolizes life and resurrection.Juxtaposed,theysymbolizetheinter-dependenceof lifeanddeath,andgardenersoftentrainthebranchesofthefruit trees to entwine around the cypresses. On Kula prayer rugs, of the type popularly referred to as cemetery rugs or mezarliks, one may find tiny cypress trees with tombs underneath incorporatedintothedesign.JamesDickie,TheIconographyof thePrayerRug,Oriental Art,Spring,1972,pp.44,46.JuliaS. BerrallThe Garden,ThamesandHudson,London,1966,p.57. [51]AbBakrSirjEd-Dn,The Book of Certainty,p.91. [52] Jall al-Din Rumi, Mathnawi, translation by R. A. Nicholson, Luzac, London, 1926, Book II, p. 412, lines 36663673. [53]The Zohar,Mantunaed.,vol.1,p.36a.Englishtranslation by Zofja Ameisenowa, The Tree of Life in Jewish Iconography, Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institute, vol.II,1938-9,p.337.Seenote38above. [54] Sefer Midrash Konen, editor Isak Zinger, Isak Zinger Publishing Co. Rawa-Ruska, 1898, p. 7. I used a translation of the passage by Zofja Ameisenowa from The Tree of Life in Jewish Iconography, Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institute, vol. II, 1938-9 p. 336, which is noted as taken from Bethha-Midrash,Ed. Jellinck VI, 28, butthisappearsto be a misprint.TheZingereditiongivestheheightofthetreeasfive
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hundred years, not five hundred days as in the Ameisenowa article. The Zohar agrees with the dimension of five hundred years,Zohar, Mantua,ed.,p.35a,soIhavesubstitutedyears fordays. [55]Foraphotographicexamplesee:DavidTalbotRice,Islamic Art,ThamesandHudson,London1965,p.23. [56]AbBakrSirjEd-Dn,The Book of Certainty,p.40. [57] Qurrat al-`uyn, Cairo, 1902 (1320 A.H.) pp. 189-90. TranslationofmostfromJamesDickie,TheIconographyofthe PrayerRug,Oriental Art,Spring,1972,p.43. [58] Asin-Palacios, Miguel, Islam and the Divine Comedy, p. 151.Fromal-Futht al-Makkya,Bulaq,1293A.H.,IIIp.554. [59] Asin-Palacios, Miguel, Islam and the Divine Comedy, pp. 150-3. [60]QurnLV:50;LXXVI:5-6LXXXIII:25-8. [61] Rm, Mathnaw, vol. VII, p. 347, lines 1362-65 in Nicholsonstranslation. [62]SeeDickie,TheIconographyofthePrayerRug,Oriental Art, Spring,1972, p.46, fig. 9; and Oleg Graber, Formation of Islamic Art, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 1973,illustration7. [63] Vogt-Goknil, Ulya, Living Oldbourne,London1966,p.82. Architecture: Ottoman,
[64] Volwahsen, Andreas, Living Architecture: Islamic Indian, Macdonald,London,1970,p.117. [65]Qurrat al-uyn,Cairo,1920,p.189.
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[66] Hill, Deric and Oleg Graber, Islamic Architecture and Decoration,FaberandFaber,London1967,fig.128. [68]AbBakrSirjEd-Dn,The Book of Certainty,p.65. [69]Ibid.,p.65. [70]Ibid.,p.26. [71]Ibid.,p.26. [72] Ibid., p. 26. Regarding transgress, the Prophet is said to havesaid,Thyexistenceisasinwherewithnoothersincanbe compared. [73] Formenton, Fabio, Oriental Rugs and Carpets, Hamlyn, London,1972,p.97;photographonp.99. [74]Dickie,TheIconographyofthePrayerRug,Oriental Art, Spring,1972,p.44. [75]QurnVII:40;XIII:23. [76]Dickie,TheIconographyofthePrayerRug,Oriental Art, Spring,1972,p.44. Originaleditorialinclusionthatfollowed theessayinStudies: Man has an eternity within him, is born into this world, not for the sake of living here, not for anything this world can give him, but only to have time and place to become
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either an eternal partaker of a divine life with God or to have an hellish eternity among fallen angels. William Law.

Noble Ross Reat - The Tree Symbol in Islam

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The Tree Symbol in Islam

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